


Nightshade

by xingnini



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alien Technology, Aliens, Alternate Universe - Aliens, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Based On Buzzfeed Unsolved, Buzzfeed Unsolved Supernatural, Conflict, Crash Landing, Internal Conflict, M/M, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-03
Updated: 2017-12-03
Packaged: 2019-02-10 04:43:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12904317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xingnini/pseuds/xingnini
Summary: The Men in Black seem to only talk to two kinds of people: those who claim to have seen a UFO and those who research UFOs. Researcher Baekhyun is assigned to present the most compelling case in the history of ufology, and while his husband is out, he is paid a night visit by two strange men.





	Nightshade

**Author's Note:**

> This is inspired by an episode of Buzzfeed Unsolved!! I’m a Boogara so that’s probably what influenced this short fic ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

“You’ve been sitting at that desk for seven hours straight, how is your butt not numb?” 

 

Chanyeol towered over his husband, Baekhyun, who was seemingly lodged onto his seat for eternity since the morning. Chanyeol’s never seen him sit in one place for long with him usually being the main energetic force that bounced around in their little house. Without Baekhyun, their house (being the only one for a few miles) would be completely quiet, if not for the chirping of crickets or the occasional yips from animals outside in the field. 

 

“It is numb,” Baekhyun admitted. “I’m just choosing not to think about it.” 

 

“Well, get off your butt and spend time with me,” Chanyeol whined like an upset puppy. “The house has been quiet the whole day and I was so bored waiting for you to get off work. You didn’t even touch the food I set out for you!” 

 

Baekhyun guiltily looked at the plate at the edge of the table; it was surrounded by the scattered papers of the research Baekhyun was reading about for the whole day. He reached out and took the spoon, scooped up a little of the food, and took a bite. 

 

“It’s delicious,” Baekhyun told his husband, a convincing smile on his face. 

 

“It’s cold now,” Chanyeol deadpanned, clearly upset that Baekhyun hadn’t eaten earlier or even bothered to heat it up now. 

 

The researcher pushed his glasses back on top of his head and stood up from his chair. Due to their height difference, Chanyeol’s head was still slightly lowered as his gaze followed Baekhyun’s movement, curious what he was going to do. 

 

Baekhyun took Chanyeol’s rough hands in his delicate ones and started playing with them, something Chanyeol always enjoyed since they first started going out. Baekhyun looked up at him with puppy eyes, the ones that Chanyeol always felt weak-willed towards. 

 

“How can I make it up to you?” Baekhyun asked while pouting. 

 

“Hmm,” Chanyeol pretended to think. “Maybe you can take a break from studying about your ‘fantasy findings’ and enjoy a nice dinner with me,” his husband suggested. 

 

“Fantasy findings? I’ll have you know that this is the most compelling case yet—” 

 

Chanyeol shot him a stern look, effectively shutting him up. 

 

“Okay, okay, yes, no alien talk at the dinner table,” Baekhyun gave in and squeezed the taller in a hug. “What do you want to eat? Want me to go out and buy the ingredients?” 

 

Chanyeol shook his head and laughed. “Like I’m going to leave the grocery shopping to you. You can’t even tell the difference between leeks and spring onions!” 

 

“Who can?” Baekhyun asked, pulling away and defending himself. “They’re the same thing!” 

 

Chanyeol grabbed his coat and his keys and started to walk to the front door. “You can stay here while I go to the market. What I’m making for dinner will be a surprise for you.” 

 

“Okay, can’t wait,” Baekhyun said with a smile. 

 

Chanyeol had already closed the door behind him when Baekhyun suddenly realized something. The case that he had been researching all day was an area that Chanyeol usually drove through to get to the market. 

 

Baekhyun ran over to the door and yanked it open, just in time to see Chanyeol getting into his car. Before his husband could close the door and drive away, Baekhyun yelled, “Take the long way to the market! The shortcut is where my case happened!” 

 

Chanyeol scoffed and let out a laugh, shaking his head at how ridiculous he thought Baekhyun was being. “It’s not like I’m gonna drive through while banging two pots together, yelling, ‘COME ABDUCT ME, ALIENS!’ It’ll be fine, Baek. I’ll be back home soon.” 

 

Before Baekhyun could protest, Chanyeol got into his car and pulled out of their driveway, driving off into the night. 

  
  
  


After Baekhyun got over his brief bout of anxiety, he decided to continue working on his case. What Chanyeol didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him, and Baekhyun’s research table would be all cleaned up, no signs of him disobeying, before his husband could get home. He sat down at the desk and continued where he left off before Chanyeol had interrupted him. 

 

Byun Baekhyun was a UFO researcher. Ever since he was a kid, he had been interested in outer space and possible life existing outside of planet earth. Ever since hearing about cases of abductions and UFO sightings on the news, he wanted to learn more. His whole life had been little steps geared towards answering the pressing question, ‘Do aliens exist?’ 

 

What was funny was that he had fallen in love with and married Park Chanyeol, a complete non-believer of extraterrestrial life. Even though Chanyeol laughed and brushed off the idea of alien life forms existing, he still respected Baekhyun’s line of work, letting his husband do what he loved most. Baekhyun and Chanyeol were paradoxical mirrors of each other, but they loved each other and made it work in their peaceful home. 

 

After they had gotten married, Chanyeol and Baekhyun moved to a house surrounded by miles and miles of fields and farms. It was a quiet life that they both wished for, with Baekhyun reading files upon files and Chanyeol tending their cows and crops. 

 

The quiet was disturbed just a few days ago when there was evidence of alien activity occurring in a field near their house. Chanyeol had waved it away and called it a hoax done by a bunch of bored kids, but Baekhyun knew better. He had passed by the area the day before and knew that the huge crop circle designs could not be done by kids with such precision overnight. There was also evidence of a fire and crash landing, but the vehicle that caused it could not be found anywhere. 

 

Baekhyun, being so close by, was ordered by his higher ups to investigate, gather information, and write a report to be presented at a conference in a few days. It was why he was rushing, wasting no time to get his work completed, and therefore unintentionally neglecting his husband for the past few days. 

 

Baekhyun was almost done transcribing his research notes to his presentation slides when he was startled.

 

_ Knock! Knock! Knock! _

 

The researcher’s eyes widened as he glanced at the watch on his wrist. It had only been twenty minutes since Chanyeol left, so how could he be back so soon? Unless he had sped down the shortcut with unnecessary speed — which was specifically what Baekhyun told him  _ not _ to do — he was not supposed to be back for another twenty minutes. 

 

Baekhyun decided he’ll forgo cleaning up his messy desk because he didn’t want to keep his husband waiting outside. As he made his way to the door, he caught sight of  _ not Chanyeol _ who was waiting outside, but two men. From where he was, he could see that they were inexplicably tall, maybe even taller than Chanyeol, and they wore dark hats and clothing. 

 

He wasn’t really expecting company tonight, but maybe his supervisor sent some people to check on his progress. It wouldn’t be a far stretch because this was a special and very important case, one that may lead to a huge breakthrough in ufology. 

 

Not thinking much of his surprise visitors, Baekhyun went to open the door. As soon as he pulled it open, he immediately regretted his choice and wanted to close it back shut. 

 

The two men gave off a menacing aura with expressions that were cold and and threatening. Above eyes that were forbidding were no signs of eyebrows or eyelashes and their skin was dead white and plastic-like, a glaring contrast with lips that were a dark, deep red. Baekhyun’s mind was screaming at him to  _ run _ because the two figures in front of him seemed so inhuman and dangerous, but he was completely rooted, frozen in his spot. 

 

In a monotone voice that almost sounded robotic, one of them spoke up, “Mr. Byun Baekhyun, we are representatives from the Korean UFO Organization.” The two of them showed Baekhyun cards in their hands that had a crest on the corner and the word  _ SECURITY  _ on it. “We are aware that you have been researching a UFO incident that occurred nearby this area.” 

 

Baekhyun cautiously nodded his head, the words of affirmation stuck in his throat. Not only was he frightened by the fact that he didn’t know these men at all and that they knew his name and what he was doing, but he was also frightened for his life. 

 

“An order was issued that you destroy your UFO research and never speak of it again.”

 

At once, Baekhyun grew furious. All fear dissipated and was forgotten as the researcher found the courage to protest. “Excuse me? I’ve spent days compiling and organizing the data and you’re telling me to get rid of all my hard work? On what grounds?” 

 

_ Who did these cartoon-like looking clowns think they were, telling him what to do? _

 

“If you want your husband to stay alive, then you’d best follow our demands to get rid of your research.”

 

_ Chanyeol. _

 

“What have you done with him?! Leave him out of this!!” 

 

The looks on the men’s faces remained placid even after each of Baekhyun’s outbursts. No reactions or emotions could be elicited from the strange men in black suits standing in front of him. 

 

“We haven’t done anything to him,” one of them answered automatically. “Mr. Park Chanyeol was driving nearby the site of the crash when he collided into the malfunctioning UFO that appeared out of nowhere on his path. He’s in critical condition right now.” 

 

“If you do not comply to the orders of getting rid of your research, we will make sure help doesn’t make its way to your husband before it’s too late.” 

 

Baekhyun wanted to cry. He wanted to lash out in anger and tell these two men that they had no business in ruining his career. He wanted to disappear, wishing none of this ever happened, that he’d never been careless enough to open the door. He wished that he had fought harder to go with Chanyeol or even made it clearer that he did not want him taking the shortcut.

 

Or that he’d never neglected his husband for his work, because then Chanyeol would have never gone out to the market and crashed in the first place. 

 

“It’s your choice, Mr. Byun.” 

 

Baekhyun eyed the papers on his desk, his heart shattering at the thought of the option he was going to pick.

 

“No matter what you choose, there will be consequences.”

  
  
  


_ Blink…  _

 

_ Blink…  _

 

_ Blink… _

 

As Baekhyun came to, he realized he felt a light squeezing in his right hand. The soreness in his neck and lower back registered next, due to falling asleep in such a weird position. As he took in his surroundings, he realized he had fallen asleep despite wanting to stay awake to keep watch. 

 

When his eyes met Chanyeol’s open ones, he shot up immediately but not without letting go of his husband’s hand. 

 

“You’re awake! How are you feeling?” 

 

“As good as a person who just a survived a car crash can feel,” Chanyeol said with a slight smile. The researcher let out a sigh of relief, seeing that his husband was already joking around. He didn’t seem to have forgotten who he was or who Baekhyun was, and his talking seemed normal. “How long have I been out?” 

 

“A couple of days,” Baekhyun answered him. 

 

“Does that mean your alien presentation at the convention happened already?” Chanyeol asked with furrowed eyebrows. 

 

Baekhyun gave him a sad smile. “I ended up not presenting. I’m on probation right now for messing up something so huge— not that it’s because of your accident!” the researcher immediately cut in when he saw Chanyeol’s expression start to fall. “I— something else happened, I had no more data to back up the claims I was making.” 

 

“What happened?” 

 

Baekhyun shifted uncomfortably in his seat, not wanting to recall the events. 

 

“Don’t worry about it… I don’t want to stress you out while you should be recovering,” Baekhyun shook his head, but then carefully looked at his husband. “But… are you well enough to talk about what happened during the accident? Do you recall what made you crash?”

 

Chanyeol scrunched his face — he had a couple of broken ribs, a fractured collarbone and arm, a neck injury, and lacerations on his head. He had gotten out of critical surgery the first night he was brought to the hospital, but the doctor told Baekhyun he should be making a steady recovery and to keep an eye out for anything abnormal in his behavior. 

 

“I can’t remember much,” Chanyeol admitted. “I kinda remember taking the shortcut… even though you told me not to,” he added sheepishly, placing the blame on himself.

 

Sensing this, Baekhyun leaned in and kissed him on the forehead where he wasn’t injured. He intertwined his fingers with Chanyeol’s and looked him in the eye. “You’re alive and that’s all that matters to me.” 

  
  
  


So Chanyeol had not remembered that he had crashed into a UFO. From what Baekhyun understood, the craft had probably appeared out of nowhere and it was too late for his husband to swerve out of the way. 

 

The researcher was driving back home in his own car to get some clothes and necessities for Chanyeol. He realized that Chanyeol’s car was probably still at the accident site and that maybe on his way home, he could stop by and see what exactly happened. 

 

Passing by the field that still had the mysterious crop circles, Baekhyun could see the damaged car up ahead. He slowed down and pulled up just behind because he didn’t know what would happen if he drove any further. He stepped out of his car and walked over to Chanyeol’s, seeing the front completely dented in. Judging from how smashed the hood was, Baekhyun was extremely grateful that Chanyeol was still alive. 

 

On the ground, something caught his eye. It kept appearing, then disappearing, as if it was flashing. Baekhyun bent over and picked it up, putting a stop to its flickering appearance.

 

It was a piece of metal, but none like he’d ever felt before. It was thin and light, as if it were aluminum foil, but when Baekhyun tried to bend it, it wouldn’t budge. He looked around, trying to see if there were more debris or possible pieces of the UFO, but he found none. 

 

He stuffed the piece of metal into his pocket and got back into his car. As fast as possible, he drove away to go back to his house. 

 

_ “This is evidence _ ,” was the only thought that ran through Baekhyun’s mind as he drove towards his house. All of his efforts wouldn’t be wasted if he could just get this to the research lab.

 

As he reached his house, he quickly passed by the scorch marks that were on his front lawn from when the two men made him burn his research case materials the other night. He barged into his house, closed the door behind him, and went straight into their shared bedroom — the faster he could get these clothes to Chanyeol, the faster he could take this piece of metal to the lab without any interruptions. 

 

When he threw whatever he could into a duffel bag, he came back outside to the living room. He was double-checking if he had forgotten anything for his husband when he heard a sound from the front door — a sound that made his blood freeze as he felt a chill run down his spine. 

 

_ Knock!  _

 

_ Knock! _

 

_ Knock! _


End file.
